Turkish investigators are likely to find out what happened to the corpse 'before long,' a senior Turkish official has said (AFP)
Saudi Arabia is facing a growing chorus of incredulity over its belated explanation of how critic Jamal Khashoggi died inside its Istanbul consulate, as US President Donald Trump and other world leaders demanded answers and the whereabouts of his body.
Saudi Arabia said overnight Friday that Khashoggi, a critic of the country's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, had died in a fight inside the building.
Turkish sources previously told Middle East Eye that they have evidence that Khashoggi was tortured, murdered and dismembered by a 15-man strong hit squad. It took Khashoggi, a Saudi national and US resident, seven minutes to die, the sources said.
On Sunday, in the latest Saudi version of what happened, a senior Saudi official said following the journalist's death, someone had dressed in Khashoggi's clothes to make it appear as if he had left the consulate, the Reuters news agency reported.
Asked during a trip to Nevada if he was satisfied that Saudi officials had been fired over Khashoggi's death, Trump said: "No, I am not satisfied until we find the answer.
"But it was a big first step, it was a good first step. But I want to get to the answer."
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Trump, who has forged close ties with Saudi Arabia and the crown prince, said he was concerned that it was unclear where the journalist's body is.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Trump said that "obviously there's been deception, and there's been lies".
Germany called the Saudi explanation "inadequate" and questioned whether countries should sell arms to Saudi Arabia.
France and the European Union urged an in-depth investigation to find out what happened to the Washington Post columnist after he entered the consulate on 2 October for documents for his marriage.
Riyadh has provided no evidence on Saturday to support its account and made no official statement on what had become of Khashoggi's body.
The Khashoggi case has caused international outrage and frayed political and business ties between Western powers and US ally Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter.
'Body rolled up in a rug'
A senior Saudi official has laid out a new version of the death in which a team of 15 Saudi nationals sent to confront Khashoggi had threatened him with being drugged and kidnapped and then killed him in a chokehold when he resisted.
According to the official, the Saudi team rolled up Khashoggi's body in a rug, took it out in a consular vehicle and handed it to a "local cooperator" for disposal.
One of the operatives then donned Khashoggi's clothes, eyeglasses and Apple watch and left through the back door of the consulate in an attempt to make it look like Khashoggi had walked out of the building, the senior Saudi official said.
Turkish investigators are likely to find out what happened to the corpse "before long", a senior Turkish official said earlier on Saturday.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called for a full investigation into the killing and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in a joint statement with her foreign minister, said the Saudi account was not enough.
"We expect transparency from Saudi Arabia about the circumstances of his death… The information available about events in the Istanbul consulate is inadequate," the Germans said.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called into question the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia, while Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said Riyadh's explanations lacked consistency and credibility.
Trump's comments about the Khashoggi incident in recent days have ranged from threatening Saudi Arabia with "very severe" consequences and warning of economic sanctions, to more conciliatory remarks in which he has played up the country's role as a US ally against Iran and "radical" groups, as well as a major purchaser of US arms.
He had earlier called the Saudi narrative of what happened to Khashoggi credible.
Trump said it was possible that the crown prince had been unaware of the circumstances around the death of Khashoggi, 59.
Search continues
Officials told Reuters in Turkey on Thursday that Khashoggi's remains may have been dumped in Belgrad Forest adjacent to Istanbul, and at a rural location near the city of Yalova, 90km south of Istanbul,
Turkish sources say the authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting Khashoggi's murder inside the consulate.
Trump said no one from his administration has heard or seen audio or video recordings, or a transcript of what happened inside the consulate.
Saudi Arabia had previously denied that Khashoggi died in the consulate.
But the Saudi public prosecutor said on Saturday that a fight broke out between Khashoggi and people who met him in the building, leading to his death. Eighteen Saudi nationals had been arrested, the prosecutor said.
Turkish sources have told MEE that they are seeking the extradition of the 15 Saudis who arrived at the consulate on the day of Khashoggi's death.
However, the sources said Ankara is extremely concerned that the suspects will be arrested and executed by Saudi authorities before Turkish investigators can have the opportunity to question them.
Saudi state media said King Salman had ordered the dismissal of five officials, including Saud al-Qahtani, a royal court adviser seen as the right-hand man to the crown prince, and deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Asiri.
The dismissed official Qahtani, 40, rose to prominence after latching onto the crown prince, becoming a rare confidant in his inner circle.
Sources say Qahtani would regularly speak on behalf of the crown prince and has given direct orders to senior officials including in the security apparatus.
The New York Times reported on Saturday, citing US and Saudi officials, that Qahtani created the strategy behind the deployment of an online army to harass Khashoggi and other critics of the kingdom on Twitter.
People close to Khashoggi and the government said Qahtani had tried to lure the journalist back to Saudi Arabia after he moved to Washington a year ago fearing reprisals for his views.
On Saturday, Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggi's Turkish fiancée, tweeted in Arabic: "They have taken your body from this world, but your beautiful smile will stay in my world forever."
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